Evening Encounters
by mwendyr
Summary: Prequel to Morning Meetings and sequel to Hopelessly Addicted. C1 revised and C2 posted
1. Chapter 1

Okay, so this is a prequel to my other story Morning Meetings and I guess it's a sequel to Hopelessly Addicted as well. It's a Mike/Alex pairing so consider that a small warning. Thank you to everyone who reviewed that story that meant a lot to me. I don't own CI but if I did I'd bring Deakins, Carver and Barek back for sure.

I know this isn't the popular choice. I'm just experimenting here with my _personal _favourite idea. Can't help it since it certainly won't disappear until it's run it's course. Feel free to tell me what you do and/or don't like about, constructively of course. ;)

Edited: This chapter has been revised.

**Evening Encounters**

Detective Alex Eames was making a bee line towards her car that was parked in One Police Plaza Garage. It was the end of a long-ish day at work, a case had been broken that morning and she and her partner had been filing paperwork ever since. She was so wrapped up in going home that she couldn't hear the man calling out her name. She felt a hand brush her arm and she turned quickly to see Detective Mike Logan looking at her, a little out of puff as he'd clearly been chasing her. "Hey, didn't you hear me?" he asked, catching his breath. Her first thoughts were that she had thought that Logan was physically fit and right now it seems she had been somewhat wrong. But it was catching his breath quite fast.

She shook her head, "Sorry, no, I was too busy thinking." Laughing at herself she suddenly realised how much she was beginning to sound like her partner.

"You hang around your partner too much." Mike commented with a mischievous grin. She thought for a moment he could read her mind but no, he was just teasing her in his own way. She gave him a smile that would satisfy him a little to know that his comment was taken in jest. She turned to carry on walking and he walked beside her. "Listen, you got plans for tonight?" he asked, she looked to see if he was asking seriously.

"No, just me and a chinese takeway. My personal date with the TV." She sarcastically replied, not really wanting to be serious. The past few weeks had been hard on her partnership with Goren, and the cases doubly so.

"Well, I don't know about you but I'm fed up of dates with TV's, so what do you say you cancel that date and let me take you out for dinner instead?" Mike asked, making Alex stop dead in her tracks just as they were about to reach her car and look directly at him.

"You're asking me out? On a date?" She asked, incredulously, she couldn't believe her ears. Had someone hit him on the head? This had to be somekind of practical joke.

"Well date, dinner, whatever word you want to use for it. I'm asking you if you want to join me. So what do you say?" She looked him in the eyes trying to see if he was serious, because with Mike Logan you just never did know. She was surprised to find that not only was he serious but he was also waiting for an answer. She was about to say no, but when she thought about it her plans really weren't that good and she could really use the company after the case they'd just have. And who better than a man with a sense of humor?

"Alright, fine. I'll join you but it had better not be disappointing." She replied, with a smile she accepted his invitation and he grinned. Even if it was some sort of practical joke, she'd only find out if she played along with it.

"Good, I'll come pick you up at 7.30." He walked off before she could respond. She suddenly began thinking - My God, it really was a date or very date-esque but instead of feeling worried like she thought she would she suddenly felt the tiniest bit excited, plus it wouldn't be fair to change her mind, would it?

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She had to say she had been surprised. Mike, so far, was being a true gentlemen. Well, as gentlemenly he could be without being too obnoxious. He'd simply taken her to an Indian restaurant, knowing that they both liked their food relatively spicy. "So, are you going to tell me why you spontaneously asked me out?" she asked, really wanting the answer to be revealed. The cop within her was suspicious. She knew she liked him, he was handsome but to be honest she had never even entertained the idea that he would've wanted to date her, she knew she wasn't his usual type. Despite the fact they had been staring at each other alot during the past few days at work, shouldn't that have been her clue? She had thought she was just fantasizing about a stupid female daydream that in her world rarely came true.

"Sure, I wanted some decent company." He replied, not revealing anything that hadn't already crossed her mind. He looked at her and he gave her a smile, he put his fork down and looked at her. She was dressed in a simple red top, low cut but not too low to reveal anything and a simple necklace. Her hair, down, as always. He liked that simple style of dress that she had. He liked women but less often felt like more. More work for his imagination, which when it came to women he definitely liked using.

She gave him a smile to say it was okay, she could tell he wasn't the kind of guy who explained his actions that way. "Next you're going to tell me that you're a hopeless romantic down at heart." She laughed as she spoke, "A big softie after all." He appreciated her stab at humor and he grinned.

"Sssh!" he put his finger to his lips. "Don't tell anyone, I've got a rep to protect." She laughed again and he laughed with her. There was something about his attitude that seemed different, she liked this side of Mike, she'd never seen this side before. His voice was still that deep voice, the kind she always had a soft spot for but he also seemed less edgier. Maybe it was the spicy food.

Feeling the need to bring some kind of discussion to the dinner rather than sitting looking and watching each other, Mike decided to try to get her to talk. "So, uh, why did you say yes?" Not exactly the best question but it was a start to break the unease that was beginning to fall between them. This was not how he planned for it to be.

"I wanted some decent company." She repeated his earlier response and he grinned again.

"Me?" he asked, a hint of playfulness in his voice. Putting his hand to his chest and over playing the question.

She laughed, "Yeah, you're better than the TV." he nodded his head whilst laughing showing that he took that one as a joke. "How are you fitting in at Major Case?" She asked, suddenly. It was something she was curious of because he had been there for 7 months now, but he hadn't really ever mentioned how he was doing there.

"Great. Barek's great, a little quiet, a little quirky." he replied. "But I've had worse for partners. You?"

"How am _I _fitting in at Major Case? Well, it's been a rough five years, but I'm finally fitting in." She joked and he laughed, suddenly no longer interested in his food. He shot her look and she realised that he'd meant with her partner, since he'd mentioned his."Well, it's been a little tough since the Garrett case but we're doing okay." She finally gave an almost completely sincere answer but she wasn't comfortable with serious. "That was a bizarre case, huh?"

He nodded, "Hmmm, my favourite." For a moment she thought that he was imitating Homer Simpson.

"Bizarre cases?" She asked, and he nodded again.

"I don't like it when they're straightforward. I feel like I'm being cheated out a job." He replied with another grin.

"Well lucky for you you got pulled away from Stanten Island then." she put her fork down as well, showing him she'd had enough food. Indian food was very filling after all. "Well, more lucky that you stuck your nose in that case a year ago otherwise Deakins wouldn't have pulled some strings." Mike laughed at the irony of that, true, if he hadn't come over to the squad room to complain about what had happened to his then girlfriend, Gina, he never would've met Deakins, Barek, Goren or Alex for that matter.

"Well, that's timing for you." That had double meaning, as the waiter took their plates away and returned with a desert menu. Alex was smiling at him the whole time the waiter was picking up plates and when he left Mike's curiosity finally showed. "What are you smiling at?"

"Nothing." She was clearly trying to surpress her smile, but she wasn't winning, not by a long shot.

"No, come on, that's not nothing. I want to know what you're grinning at." He looked at her directly and she began to laugh. "Well, see, I take you out for dinner and you laugh at me." Feigning his hurt. This just made Alex laugh harder but she couldn't help it. She covered her mouth to try and stifle her laughter but it wasn't working and it was also too late. He knew she was laughing and he assumed it was at him. He raised his eyebrows and shook his head at her.

"I'm sorry." She said between fits of laughter. "But... you've got..." She waited until she calmed down a little bit and that looked at him seriously, dead on, straight and poker faced. She spoke calmly and quietly, keeping her voice straight. "You've got mango chutney in your hair. That's gonna be a pain to get off." Mike closed his eyes in the embarrassment and then opened them just to see her smiling at him. He smiled back trying to cover his embarrassment and be 'manly' about i. He picked up his napkin, trying to locate the chutney. "Here." she took the cloth off of him and stood up, reached over and carefully removed the chutney from his hairline as best as she could. But some still remained, she chose not to tell him since she'd already embarrassed the poor man enough.

"Thank you." he mumbled trying to hide his embarrassment but she was still smiling when she sat down. He finally laughed a little at the whole situation and he relaxed. "So, did the waiter see it?" Alex gave a small laugh as she saw his desperate expression. She couldn't help it, she just had to tell him the truth.

"Are you kidding? He's the one that accidentally dropped it in your hair." The look on his face was the prize for Alex as she decided that honesty really was the best policy.

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TBC

Please review. Thank you for reading.


	2. Chapter 2

_Words in italic are Logan's thoughts._

**Evening Encounters, Chapter 2**

Sighing.

More sighing.

_Can't my life be simple just for one evening? _Mike Logan stared at himself in his bathroom mirror. His hair wet from washing it, trying to remove the remnants of Mango Chutney that had seriously threatened to ruin his mood for a week. _What kind of waiter loses his grip on his chutney? _Draping the red towel around his shoulders, he unlocked the bathroom door and walked into his main living area to be greeted by the grin of one very (seemingly) patient Alex Eames, who had driven him home in his tempered state.

"I still can't believe you complained about it." She said to him with amusement. _At least she's having a good time. _Suddenly wondering what had compelled him to ask her to dinner in the first place... he watched her smile at him. _Oh yeah, that was it. _

"Hey, we got dinner for free. Don't knock it." He replied, dryly. He grinned at her as he sat down and suddenly noticed the way she was looking at him. He looked at her suspiciously before asking, "What? I didn't miss some did I?" He began fingering his hair to check for stickiness.

She laughed, "No, it's all gone. I promise." She held her hand up in mock honor.

"Then what?" He asked, looking down at his pants to check he hadn't splashed water anywhere embarrassing or that he hadn't spilt his dinner earlier and not noticed because he hadn't even bothered to check.

She used her thumb and pointed towards his CD cabinet. "I found something."

"My CD's? Thanks." He commented sarcastically and after a pause added, "They weren't missing."

She snorted in response to that and then shook her head. "No, I found a specific CD, actually a few CD's, that were quite interesting." Once again that grin would not remove itself from her face.

_Huh? _"You don't like my taste in music?" Grunt and pause. "What's wrong with Zeppelin?"

"Zeppelin is a legend. I'm not referring to that. I like your taste in music." _Damn her, she's being purposely cryptic._

"You can stop beating around the bush now." He said, bringing on his best 'stern' look, but it only seemed to make her laugh. _Now I know why Goren rubs his neck in frustration. _

She leant into him and whispered. "ABBA." He blinked. His head kept moving from her to his CD cabinet several times. He blinked again and then stared at her. He opened his mouth to argue with her and she raised her hand to stop him. "No, no, it's definitely there. I checked."

"They..." pause "were a birthday present." He had to find an excuse and that was the best one he could come with it. _Well, she's going to see right through that one _

She snorted. "No need to deny it, you're a dancing queen." He raised his eyebrow at her. "And a closet fan." she added and laughed his very fish-like expression he was putting on.

"Okay. Okay." He held his hands up in defeat. "Look, seriously though, come on. I mean, let's face it I haven't listened to those CD's in years."

"They do have some dust going on." She agreed, with a laugh and then looked at him in the face. She pointed at him whilst she spoke in a very serious tone. "You are going to have to get out of town."

"Why?" He asked, concerned at how serious she seemed to be taking it.

"Because I'm going to tell _everyone_." She replied, finally full-out laughing at him since she could no longer hide it in. He pursed his lips together trying to contain himself but the sound of her laughter was making it incredibly hard.

He looked at her, making a point of trying to look annoyed, upset, angry, frustrated, but after all of two seconds he face split into a smile and he playfully slapped her on the arm. "That's for snooping through my stuff."

"You'd have done the same thing if we'd gone to my place." She said, logically. Knowing full well that the instinct of a cop doesn't remain at the office or with their badge.

"Ha, that'd never happen." He replied and she looked at him with a raised eyebrow. He had been smiling but it quickly dropped when he saw that she may have taken what he had said the wrong way. _Damn. _"I mean because you would never have let chutney fall into your hair." Her expression softened and then she smiled.

Shrugging, "True. Although I have to say you did come up with a more ingenius way of getting me into your apartment than most guys would have." She said, shifting a little on the seat so she could face him as it was getting difficult to just turn her head to him. "I can't think of any other man who would have done that. Very original." He wanted to tell her that he didn't do it on purpose but he figured she knew that because her tone of voice told him that she wasn't mad at him at all, in fact, she seemed to find it amusing. Of course, he also wanted to point that she had _offered _to drive him home so that he could wash his hair but he didn't want to spoil it.

It seemed that the tension that had been between them at the restaurant had completed vanished. "So, uh, while you were snooping did you find anything that you'd like to watch?" He asked, wondering if she had really snooped or half snooped and whether she'd truly want to stay.

"Well." She looked at him. "I did find some interesting DVD's, although I can promise you that your Sinatra movies are not among them." She glanced at him and then picked up a particular case and looked at him with curiosity,

"Ah, well, see, what can I tell you?" he crossed his arms and grinned, "I have a thing for dinosaurs too." He took the Jurassic Park case off her and stood up. "You want to watch it?" he looked at her, curious if she was just pointing out the choice because she found him strange or whether it was because she actually like it. He couldn't tell.

"Sure." she replied with a shrug and then she showed her interest by adding with a smile, "I've never seen it."

He looked at her in shock in response to what she had said, and he had to do a double take. "You've _never _seen Jurassic Park?" She shook her head to reply, finding it a little strange that he found that strange. "Lucky for you I have the better one out of the lot then." He put the DVD in the player and waited to make sure it loaded. _Knowing my luck the damn thing won't start. _It did, however, begin loading and he sat back down. She poked him as soon as he did and Mike looked at her finger and then at her. "What?"

"Popcorn." She replied, thinking that surely he thought it was strange to watch something without food.

"Popcorn?" He asked and she nodded.

"Yeah, or something similar." He looked at her thoughtfully and then stood up.

"I have just the thing." he said as he wandered off into his kitchen. She watched the screen whilst he was gone, fascinated in the story that Dr Grant was telling the young boy to frighten him. She was so into the film she didn't notice when he returned. "Here you go." He handed her a spoon and small tub.

She smiled, gratefully taking the cold tub from his hands. "Ice cream." she pointed out with a grin. "_This _is much better than popcorn." He had let her hold the tub since in his experience women did like to control the ice cream and it seemed he'd made the right choice. Although he had a feeling she wouldn't have minded to much if he'd held it.

They watched the movie in silence for a good few minutes before Alex decided to speak up again, not taking her eyes off the screen, she said, "Thank you."

"For what?" he asked, turning to face her, trying to get a better view of her face. Thankfully, she turned round to give him some eye contact and he saw that for once this evening she was being serious about it, and not joking.

"For giving me a better date than my TV." She replied with a smile, but this time it wasn't from amusement, it was a sincere smile and he smiled back.

"You're welcome." it was all he said, it was all he could say. They both turned their heads back towards the TV and watched the rest of the movie in peace.

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Thank you for reading. Since this was prequel to Morning Meetings, and if you haven't read that (and you actually like this) then you could read that one too. I haven't decided if I'm going to keep it up, you'll know when I know.

Also I don't actually know if Logan likes Zeppelin or watches Dinosaur movies. But, in this one, he does. ;)


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